Archive for September, 2010

This one is similar to Ferrero Raffaelo. We have a coconut praline, but this coconut is covered with a really thin chocolate coating. Everything else is exactly the same: Wafer coating with coconut rasps, liquid fondant filling and an almond makes the center of the chocolate.

It is entirely wrapped and I find it really difficult to unwrap it without having all the coconut rasps lying everywhere afterwards. The first thing I notice is the coconut aroma. The treat has a chocolate top and some caramel sprinkles on it, just like all the Ferrero Garden versions.

This chocolate tastes like coconut, but the dominating flavor in here is the sweet fondant crème which contains a lot of sugar, a little coconut and some citrus taste as well. It is fresh and light, and I was caught by surprise! I did not expect this fruity, acerb-lemon bytaste, which is really nice! The chocolate is hardly noticeable, but I don’t really miss that, because the filling is creamy and milky enough. But one of these chocolates is definitely too less to start for.

The almond-center makes a great contrast to the sweet filling; plus it adds a nice contrast texture-wise as well. I like the composition of the different textures as well as the different flavors. If you take it as a whole, this tiny chocolate has a lot to offer: coconut, sugar, chocolate, lemon, wafer, almond center… What else do you want?

This week’s Ritter Sport in the spotlight is the peppermint version. Geek, they got me… There are only a few chocolate versions I really dislike – after eight for example, because I do not like the mint in combination with chocolate – as a chewing gum, this is perfectly fine! But then there are two different ways to add mint to a chocolate: Either some kind of aroma in the plain chocolate, or a white creamy mint filling. The latter is the version sounding more repelling to me, and guess what the Ritter Sport chocolate is like – right, dark semi-sweet chocolate filled with this white mint thingy. The mint aroma gets through as soon as you open the foil, even though it does not fully overshadow the rich dark chocolate shell surrounding it. It is fresh and slightly acerb, just like a peppermint chewing gum.

The chunks are completely separated in this case, so you have to bite right in it to see, feel and taste it. Okay, I have to admit, it is not as bad as I expected it to be! The chocolate coating is nice and before you hit the fresh mint flavor, there is a nice rich taste of chocolate coming from the mid-thick coating. It is pretty solid but still easy to chew and makes a nice contrast to the smooth and sticky mint fondant filling on the inside. The peppermint filling is fresh and immediately remembers me of all the after eights I’ve tried so far, and the Milka bar I tested recently. Personally, I’d put this bar somewhere in between those products, but quality-wise it is better than the Milka bar, especially the actual chocolate part. It is not Ritter Sport’s fault that mint is just not my type of flavor.

As Ben wrote in his “Ritter Sport of the week” post on the Ritter blog, you either hate or love this chocolate. I guess that’s totally true!

Right now I’m trying to get through “old” reviews I’ve written some time ago but still need to be posted. This white mousse au chocolat treat is one of them.
I am totally surprised by this chocolate! You might know by now that I am a huge fan of white chocolate. Still I thought a white mousse au chocolate covered in white chocolate would be way too sickly. But Lindt taught me better:
At first there is a really milky taste of chocolate coming from the coating. Soon it mixes up with a glimpse of vanilla which goes really well with the chocolate. You can also sense some almonds in there as a faint by-taste, something I find pretty cool!

Who thought the coating would be a highlight in milky taste, has not come to the filling. The really light mousse inside the treat provides an exceptional taste of milk: Somehow they managed to produce a white mousse with a really dominant flavor of milk, while at the same time not overshadowing the typical white-chocolate flavor; plus, it does not get sickly too soon, even though it is rather sweet. The scent of vanilla is barely distinguishable from the rest, but that’s totally alright as the chocolate coating contains enough vanilla for a white chocolate treat, just like the motto: Less is more.

The only thing thatbothers me a little is the texture, as the thing tends to break apart while eating. Maybe a slightly thicker coating would prevent that. Further, it gets a little boring in time as there is no diversity. But as I know how difficult it is to make a light and creamy “mousse au chocolat”-filling, this one is really outstanding again. If you are searching for a good white chocolate treat with a light but creamy filling, this is your choice!

I don’t want to write a huge entry and tell you everything that happened, I just want to get to the basics. Why, you ask? There were so many impressions I want to organize first before I write them down. Basically, I learned a lot about chocolate an especially Ritter Sport on Friday, and I am so glad I am part of the ambassador team!

We ambassadors were invited to a meeting at Waldenbuch, home of Ritter Sport’s factories. I feared the 5-hour drive, especially since I had to get up at 3am the day after I did not have too much time to rest…but I had been looking forward to this meeting since we got the invitation, so I took my train while I was half asleep this ‘morning’.
I did not expect anything they had in store for us: after a very warm welcome we could grab some breakfast before we were shown the factory.

We got lots of information and input, and even though we could not see the actual production process (most of the time), it was a really impressive guide through all the halls. We saw how the packaging is done and took a glance at the huge amount of raw ingredients they keep in store. Then, we got lunch and a very well done presentation on the basic Ritter Sport chocolates and ingredients. It was pretty cool to try the basic chocolates which usually come with a filling, or the raw ingredients that come with a chocolate coating.

Last thing we did was discussing the tasks of us ambassadors and what we want to plan and do in the (near) future. There are some great ideas and I really believe we will make an awesome team!
My drive back is like through hell and back, and yet I won’t complain and drive again without having to think about it twice! Thanks for this amazing day, Ritter Sport! Great to be part of this!

Yes, those chocolates there are the new winter collection, available in stores in about two weeks. I had the chance to try them, and I am really looking forward to writing an in-depth review.

My drive back is like through hell and back, and yet I won’t complain and drive again without having to think about it twice! Thanks for this amazing day, Ritter Sport! Great to be part of this! Oh, and take a look at these pretty cool Ritter Sport cars colored like the almond, (former) peanut and alpine milk chocolate:

Today I’ll just leave a Ritter Sport review for you – tomorrow I’ll tell you about my trip to Waldenbuch, the place where the Ritter Sport factory is. It was an awkward long way, but in the end it really was worth taking this 5-hour-horror-train-trip (next time I’d take the plane!). I met lots of great and creative people and had an amazing day down there! Thanks to Ritter Sport for inviting us ambassadors, I am so glad I am part of this!

Now, let’s focus on the chocolate: If you’ve read my white and dark whole nut reviews, there is just little left to say. Whole nut comes with the same huge whole hazelnuts as the white and the dark chocolate, just that it is milk chocolate the nuts are embedded in. 23% of nuts and 77% of Ritter’s classic milk chocolate make the most wanted Ritter bar in their range (sc.:Ritter-Sport).

The sweet milk chocolate and the rich hazelnuts make another good combination of sweet and nutty; the basic taste is milder than the dark version, and slightly sourer than the white bar. The milky taste alternates with the nutty hazelnut flavor. As usual the nuts are juicy and well chosen, and as you can see in the picture, they are not only delicious but good-looking as well.

I guess I don’t need to mention this perfect combination of smooth and creamy chocolate and the nice crunchy chewiness of those large nuts, do I?

I need to give it a point less than the white one, but that’s probably just a personal preference!

The last time I ate an original Duplo I was a little disappointed by the little satisfaction I got from eating this. Being only 18.2g, this is a very small treat, and yet I expect a chocolate treat to satisfy me, whatever its size is!

The bitter chocolate coating does not remind me anyhow of the original version which has a really sweet milk chocolate coating. I am a little surprised by the bitterness, but this could make a great mix with the sweet nougat crème inside the bar.
The chocolate is not as bitter as I expected it to be, but it is also not sweet, rather mild. It does not melt too easily, but as there are layers of wafers beyond the coating, you have to chew it anyway. I like the chocolate, even though it is not the highest quality and richest. The mix with the wafers and the nougat crème is just awesome. It does not get as sweet as the original version, and therefore is really delicious!

And, do you know what the best part was? I was (at least a little) satisfied after I was done with that treat! This is something small I’d go for again; as it is nice for a small break.

This is one of the first cookie-filled chocolates I’ve ever tried. The treat smells milky and sweet and somehow familiar. After inhaling the aroma a few times I know where I have sensed this smell before: The British Maltesers had the same sweet milky aroma. It does not look like a usual straight bar, the pieces are wiggly-lined shaped and have the Galaxy “G” on their top. What made me smile were the eating instructions: “For maximum pleasure enjoy Galaxy in complere peace and quiet”.

The chocolate is definitely different from the maltesers coating, and I like that fact. It is not as sweet, but still contains a lot of sugar. And the more you eat the sweeter it seems to get. Still, for the really low amount of cocoa the bar has a really rich taste of chocolate instead of milk.

But when it comes to the cookie crumbles, I’m very disappointed: There are not too many pieces of cookies in the bar, but there are enough to make it crunchy. There are also a few smooth parts without any crunch, so that you can enjoy the plain chocolate (if you like this sweet sugary chocolate flavor!)

All in all this is not really what I would consider very well done. There are several other cookie bars that are way better done and make use of the full potential of the dark cocoa cookies. I think of the Hershey’s cookie’s’n’crème bar here. There the mini cookies make a real difference to the chocolate in the bar; their taste does not disappear in the jungle of the very dominating chocolate. But I have to admit I like its looks!